comedy(?) of errors

Washington, D.C.

The day before we get here, we find out that the teevees, of which 60 are supposed to be delivered daily, aren't. We get a delivery of 180 rushed instead...which creates a storage problem, but we know we can figure a way around that.

We get in after midnite and the hotel doesn't seem to know we're coming. They have no rooms reserved for us and say they're fully booked for the night. After some coaxing, they manage to find 3 rooms, so the 7 of us double-bunk and hit the sack.

The next morning that issue gets resolved...the teevees show up, the furniture shows up...but the countertop delivery we're expecting doesn't happen. Frantic, my boss calls the supplier, who calls the freight carrier, who informs us all that someone has dropped the ball and the granite is still sitting on the dock. In Long Beach, California. Mapquest tells me that's 2,686 miles away.

The carrier promises to find a tandem driveteam to get it here by Saturday. On the worst weather weekend nationwide so far this winter.

It gets delivered Monday. By a solo driver that doesn't speak english.


On the plus side, the late delivery gave us an unscheduled day off. I got to hang out with Sherri's cousin Jim and wife Stephanie, which was fun. We did some whirlwind sightseeing and had dinner at their place...and that was so infinitely much better than restaurant food. Their kids Liv and Theo are cool, too. Good food, good company, definitely a plus.

On the minus side, unscheduled days off strain the production schedule and push us hard up against the completion date. At that point, I'm hoping that maybe I can push production so I can still make my flight to SLC for the family picture.

I start cutting the furniture Monday afternoon, and it's a decorative shape that involves a more detailed cut than usual. Slow going, and no rushing it.

One of the more volatile members of our crew got into an in-your-face shouting match with the hotel's Chief Engineer at the end of the day today, and is likely canned for it. Being down one guy sure isn't going to help this get finished faster.

At this rate, we'll be doing good to get out of here by Christmas Eve...

the children are wondering

why would someone have a secret stash of vanilla?

really, just why?

Random thoughts from the road

Well, from my head, actually...I don't know that roads think.

I am traveling again...left San Diego, came home for three days, and am now in Santa Fe. I'm leaving Tuesday for Washington, D.C. I fly from there to Utah on the 20th for another chapter in the saga of Hale family picture adventures...which have been a part of my interaction with them since I joined up. lol

It was actually before I joined up, because Sherri and I were only engaged at the time, and I'll never forget her mother's admonition to me about not backing out now that I was in the family picture! (Like that was gonna happen...) I'll also never forget Sherri seeing the picture for the first time, and wondering how I appear to be taller than her in it. ;)

So, Christmas with the fam, then we drive home on the 26th (which will hopefully not be too much of a challenge, over the river and through the woods...and mountain passes...in late December), then second Christmas with the local chapter of the Hoffman family, then I leave again for a job starting on January 5th in Beverly Hills.

I feel kinda like a jet-setter, all this travel, all these fancy hotels. I'm in a Hilton right now, right off the historic plaza in downtown Santa Fe. Amazing art and shops and museums and food, all within a stone's throw. In fact, there's a huge art auction at the hotel here tomorrow, by Altermann Galleries. Some amazing stuff...all well out of the range of my pocketbook...

I get Sunday off and will spend the day wandering the neighborhood, do a little shopping and a lot of sightseeing.

I like it here, even though it's sooooo dry. One of the guys on the crew was complaining about trying to acclimate to the altitude (7000'), he keeps waking up from dreaming that he's running and can't catch his breath...and he cracked me up talking about the (lack of) humidity, he said it was so dry his boogers cut his nose.

Now that's dry.

So here I am. I miss my beautiful wife, and I miss my kids, and I miss my home, and I miss my friends. But I'm okay. And I'm making lots of money, so that makes it better, yeah?

Ehhhh...not really, but I'm okay.

Most of you reading this are probably well aware of how cool Sherri is...but there's so many little things that I know and appreciate that I know you don't know. And I guess that's the way it's supposed to be, since I'm the one married to her...

But what is probably the thing about her that amazes me the most is the depth of her love. For her children. (ALL of them. Yes, you.) For me. For her siblings and her parents. And for the rest of the friends and family that are part of her and have touched her life.

She is tough as nails when need be...and when her guard is down she is softer than velvet, and mushy and tender. I am so grateful that she came into my life, and that I get to see that side of her...probably more than anyone else does.

Sorry, baby...'cause maybe that's ratting you out just a little, and I know you hate that. I just love you. I think you're the coolest, and the best, and I don't care who knows it. In fact, I want to tell the whole world.

So I did.